Hygrophila polysperma "Rosanervig," or Sunset Hygro as it is more commonly known, is a very versatile and beautiful cultivated variation of H. polysperma. Its leaves have veins of white (thought to be the result of a harmless virus) and turn shades of pink and red under adequate light. An undemanding plant, Sunset Hygro does not require CO2 or high light to grow. However, if these are provided, the plant will grow very rapidly, often requiring weekly trimming. Through frequent trimming the plant can be trained to take on a low, compact, bushy form and thus it can be a midground as well as a background plant. It is a perfect plant for beginners or lower light, low tech aquariums as it can survive in almost any conditions. If well trimmed and trained, it can also make a gorgeous centerpiece in an aquascape.

Sunset Hygro is fairly easy to obtain from other hobbyists but may be harder to buy in local fish stores due to its nuisance weed status. If you do need to get rid of some, please do not dump it into local waterways as it can clog them rapidly and kill off native species. Instead, put it in the trash.

Overall, Sunset Hygro has been one of the easiest plants to grow for me, and although it was a bit troublesome at first to work into an aquascape, through frequent trimming it has taken on a more attractive bushy appearance that blends will in my aquarium.

4 comments:

I bought some plants from my local fish store, and a tiny bit of one of these was a stowaway. I planted it not knowing what it was, and now it's going crazy. I have good lighting, and CO2 injection, and these plants are going nuts! They are even sprouting roots off of the stem. Good to know that they do well w/o CO2, because I plan to aquascape a river biotope with just a few plants, rocks, and wood.